Reviews

The Dark Knight is a masterpiece! A truly brilliant film. Epic, action-packed, intelligent, dramatic. A sensational score. A cautionary tale about morality, moral dilemmas and their consequences, and the blurred lines between good and evil. Plus an exercise in BRILLIANT Film-making AND WRITING. The direction and cinematography are graphic, Gothic, and gripping.

OH...AND GIVE HEATH LEDGER AN Oscar!!! Not because he died. Truly, I feel this Oscar hype would exist even if he were alive today. Because, from an actor's point of view, his performance is one of the FINEST CHARACTERIZATIONS I have ever seen in a film character. It was a truly iconic performance and will be remembered. It is a well-crafted, nuanced performance while simultaneously going perfectly over the top. He doesn't play a comic book character, a stock villain, or the comedic relief...but a real man, albeit an insane one...a sadomasochist who doesn't care about killing our hero, but toying with him...unafraid to die or to feel physical pain but fully cognizant that the hero will not take his life because it poses him too difficult an ethical dilemma. How do you defeat a madman with absolutely nothing to lose? It's chilling and Ledger is truly magnificent. He is a true method actor and is transformed here. In that sense, he has crafted the most iconic screen villain, I think, ever.

Not even once do you see a GLIMMER of the actor behind the face paint. Everything about him from the physical ticks, the voice, the walk, the sadomasochism, the laughter, and delivery of some TRULY BRILLIANT DIALOGUE and deliciously evil one-liners...are INCREDIBLE. The part is extremely well-written and what I love even more is that Ledger and the writers don't try to offer some pop psychology explanation for why the Joker is this way. A truly fine performance that I cannot gush about enough. Give. Him. The Oscar.

But his is not the only good performance. All the actors are excellent in the film, especially Gary Oldman as Commissioner Gordon. A huge debt should be paid to the script, which is so intelligent. Oldman's speech in the final minute of the film is like lyric poetry, with the emotional, dramatic score pulsing underneath him.

It needs to be seen to be believed. The Dark Knight is an amazing film. A+

Alyson Hannigan is a very promising actress and her work on various television series' such as "How I Met Your Mother" and "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" has been exemplary. Why she chose to take part in this idiotic film is beyond me.

From an analytical standpoint, after watching the film it became very clear that it is targeted towards lower class 16-29 year olds in urban environments. The film has no sense of high-brow comedy that can be expected from a parody or satire. It even lacks the quick pacing of a farce. It is slow and droll, and the constant repetition of rap/r&b music for laughs is so see through. "Look, how funny!! Two stuffy white people speaking the lyrics of 'Candy Shop' by Fitty Cent!" ... err... not funny at all.

Film could have been easily been more high brow and layered but it was stupid, low-brow comedy (and even lowbrow comedy can be appreciated sometimes, but not when its as in-your-face and repetitious as this.) DON'T SEE THIS MOVIE!!!

Who knew that Lindsay Lohan could deliver a performance of this caliber? My friends and I, all movie aficionados, were stunned by her performance, albeit a supporting role. I never EVER thought I would utter those words. As mentioned earlier, Lohan's real acting debut is here.

Still, her's is highlighted by a magnificent ensemble, particularly Tomlin and Streep, who give dazzling performances. After all these years, they've still got it- and Tomlin, an Altman favorite, is particularly up to par with the snap-and-go dialogue.

As always, his direction must be taken with a grain of salt- you either love him or hate him, but the performances are what make this film soar.

Kudos!

There are few performances in American cinema that are regarded as being the best of all time. This is one of them. When looked at a hundred years down the line, Jodie Foster's adult turn as a rape victim will be considered one of the best of her generation. In fact, Jodie Foster's performance is right behind Meryl Streep in "Sophie's Choice" as being one of the superlative, best performances of all-time American cinema. Bold, raw, nuanced, and carnal. Jodie Foster deserved every accolade she received for this film, including her "Best Actress" Oscar. Some of the film can be hard to watch, incredibly gut-wrenching rape scene and scenes where Jodie graphically describes what happened to her.